On 10th March (8h30-13h00), the next Brussels Development Briefing will discuss the key role Biodiversity plays in rural development, especially for ACP countries. Issues at stake include: the relationship between poverty and biodiversity, the effects of biodiversity loss in hunger and food insecurity, governance issues, the Intellectual Property Rights’ challenge, farmers rights and economic incentives, policies and legislation at the national, regional and global levels. Speakers include DG of Bioversity International, IUCN, Practical Action, EC, Members of parliament, ACP farmers groups, researchers...

Our video guest this week is Mr. George Ouma. He works for Deutsche Stiftung Weltbevölkerung (DSW), the German Foundation for World Population in Kenya. On the occasion of his participation in the Brussels Development Briefing on population growth and its implications for developing and ACP countries, Mr. Mona Herbert presented to us the situation of the youth in Kenya. He made a linkage between health and security issues. Mr. George Ouma also explained in depth the role played by youth centers in educating and informing the youth in rural areas. Watch the video Videos of the Briefing on population growth Next Briefing on Biodiversity

European Parliament: -23rd February : Pascal Lamy will give a presentation on the state of play of the Doha round; Hearing on Corporate and social responsibility in international trade agreements-24-25: Plenary session

An allocation of €200 Million from the 10th European Development Fund (EDF) has been allocated to the new Water Facility. A new call for proposals was launched on the 11th of February, 2010. The ACP-EU Water Facility was set up in 2004, with the principal objective of providing water and basic sanitation to the poor, and to improve water management governance in African Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries.The Call for Proposals of the Second ACP-EU Water Facility has been launched.T he deadline for submission of proposals: 2nd June 2010 All relating documents (guidelines, application forms, etc) are online

In a challenge ahead, Europe has 2 main contributions to make: development policy thinking and development aid delivery. Development policy is a key part of the "Europe 2020" vision presented by president Barroso. In particular, as we look ahead to a "global Europe", it is in times of development challenges that the EU can become a champion of global governance – challenges which include world economic recovery, climate change, migration, food security and making progress towards the Millennium Development Goals. The Commission is already exploiting its expertise in development and strengthening the link between development policy, researchers, national authorities and civil society. To meet the Millennium Development Goals, the EU must implement its plans for greater coherence between policies in different sectors (“policy coherence for development”) and make aid more effective by coordinating the Commission (EuropAid) and 27 EU countries in one cogent effort to tackle poverty worldwide. The EU is the biggest aid donor in the world, channelling some 60% of total official development assistance to Asia, Pacific, Middle East, Africa, Caribbean and Latin America ( €49bn in 2008, or €100 per European citizen). By improving aid predictability and achieving a better division of labour (the 2 main principles of efficient aid delivery), the EU could minimise the burden on recipient countries and free up resources worth €3-6bn a year (2009 aid-effectiveness study). Helping developing countries recover from the economic slowdown and beyond will be the top priority for the incoming development Commissioner. In times of economic crisis, sustaining financing for development is difficult but crucial for poor countries suffering even more than their developed counterparts.

After attending an informal meeting of European development ministers at La Granja de San Ildefonso in Segovia, the three main players in rebuilding Haiti after the earthquake, the UN, the EU and the United States, pledged to improve coordination between them in order to ensure a more effective division of the workload. The most urgent requirement right now is for latrines, tents and plastic sheeting to prevent more than one million Haitians from having to survive out in the open with the rains and hurricane season almost upon them, said the Head of the UN Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), Edmond Mulet. Spain's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Miguel Ángel Moratinos, stressed that the tragedy in Haiti would serve as a "model" for the European Union in developing a new way of working more effectively. The European Commission's Commissioners for Development and Humanitarian Aid, Andris Piebalgs and Kristalina Georgieva, and the Administrator of USAID, Rajiv Shah, also agreed on the need for countries to better coordinate their aid. The American humanitarian aid representative, Rajiv Shah, said the United States had made a "solid and long-term" commitment to Haiti, and promised that improving how work is done jointly with the country's partners was a priority for the government of Barack Obama.

Food prices are likely to fluctuate and supply crises become more frequent, according to a paper prepared by Spain, which holds the presidency of the Council of Ministers, on the future of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Agriculture ministers will discuss the paper on Monday (22 February) as they continue their long-running debate on how to reform EU farm policy after 2013. The debate is set to gather pace in 2010, as the European Commission is due to publish a paper later in the year to launch a formal debate on CAP budget and policy goals. The rise and fall in food and commodity prices over the past few years provides the backdrop for CAP reform, but national governments are likely to draw different conclusions on what volatility means for the CAP. Food prices rose sharply between 2006-08 and then fell back in 2009 as the recession took hold, a downward turn that prompted calls from European farmers for protection against market volatility.

On the eve of the meeting of Development Ministers on Monday in Brussels, Vice President and High Representative Catherine Ashton underlined the EU's determination to help Haiti in overcoming the consequences of the devastating earthquake. Ministers will discuss the EU's contribution to the short-term relief operation, but also in the forthcoming reconstruction efforts in the disaster area. On Wednesday next week, VP/HR Ashton will travel to the United States for meetings at the UN headquarters in New York and with the US Administration.

Western European countries are skipping out to the tune of $19 billion (€14bn) on the aid pledges they made to developing countries five years ago at a landmark G8 meeting, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Aid to poor countries in 2010 will be lower than donors promised five years ago at the 2005 Group of Eight meeting in Scotland - largely as a result of the economic crisis, says a report published on Tuesday by the OECD, the international club of wealthy countries. With national budgets squeezed in the wake of the crash, many governments believe that charity begins at home, resulting in a shortfall of $21 billion (€15bn) from OECD nations. According to the OECE review of 2010 aid budget plans, donors are to disburse $107 billion (€78bn) this year (in 2004 dollars), instead of the $128 billion (€93bn) committed in 2005. Some $19 billion of the overall shortfall will come from the EU15 - the old, wealthier member states that made the original pledges.

In a letter to the Spanish EU presidency, Amnesty International challenges the EU to adopt a common position ahead of the UN General Assembly in September, ensuring that human rights are at the core of any decision relating to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). As EU development ministers meet in Segovia, Spain on 17-18 February, Amnesty International hopes to see specific action when it comes to the establishment of an EU evaluation process where concrete strategies for actions in the MDG framework are ensured. The EU must also work to strengthen both national and international MDG efforts to meet and exceed the targets by ensuring consistency with international human rights standards. Despite the fact that significant steps have been made by the EU to develop tools for mainstreaming human rights into poverty reduction strategies, obvious gaps still exist between the recognition of the importance of human rights for development and the practical application of human rights in all MDG efforts. The lack of progress on MDG 5 to improve maternal mortality is an obvious example in which efforts to address the human rights violations associated with lack of access to maternal health care, including child marriage, FGM and lack of empowerment for women and girls, have been limited.

Entering a new decade with a new Treaty, the EU now possesses more tools to adapt and cope with an increasingly complex, multipolar and interdependent world. Of course, the Lisbon Treaty in itself will not transform the EU into a global superpower, nor even save it from eventually becoming irrelevant in light of the emergence of new global powers and of a geopolitical shift towards the Pacific. But the EU can now look forward. One of the key challenges of this decade will be to see how the West, and more specifically how the EU will deal with this rising multipolarity. Indeed, it is in the interest of the EU – not to say a matter of survival – to promote an international order based on systemic and rule-based multilateralism because the EU is simply unable to play realpolitik with other global players. However, not all forms of multilateralism are favourable to the EU. For instance, the formation of ad hoc bilateral or multilateral alliances could potentially be damaging to Europe. A G-2 between China and America, for example, would slowly but inevitably make the US lean towards Asia, and render Europe increasingly irrelevant.

German Development Minister Dirk Niebel, who participated in the climate summit in Copenhagen, called the results "disappointing". Now it was time to secure the progress that had been made, he said. The BMZ has already decided what it will do: support for partner countries will be increased – provided they themselves also work on limiting their greenhouse gas emissions and on pushing forward with efforts to adapt to climate change. During a meeting with World Bank Vice President Kathy Sierra, Niebel signed an agreement for Germany to contribute 50 million euros to the Bank’s Pilot Programme for Climate Resilience. At a meeting between Development Minister Niebel, Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle and heads of state and government from eight Pacific Island States, Niebel announced that the regional programme "Managing the impact of climate change on land resources in the Pacific" would receive a further ten million euros.

In the first ever “European Report on Development” (ERD), independent researchers assess ways to overcome fragile statehood in sub-Saharan Africa. Dysfunctional institutions, protracted crises and conflicts are important obstacles to fighting poverty and fostering sustainable development. This is a complex issue, aid critics often tend to neglect.

UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova yesterday (17 February) broke new ground with the EU for enhanced cooperation with the United Nations' educational, scientific and cultural organisation. Her compatriot Kristalina Georgieva, the EU commissioner for humanitarian aid, outlined joint action to help alleviate the Haiti crisis. Georgieva explained that the Commission was committed to covering educational aspects in responding to the Haiti crisis, as in her words, after securing food and shelter - even if that meant just temporary shelters or tents - the next priority must be to help children continue their education. Somewhat surprisingly, it emerged that UNESCO had developed a system for tsunami alerts, which the Commission was eager to take on board in developing early warning capacities. The system was developed after the 2004 tsunami in South-East Asia, and was recently successfully tested in a real disaster situation, Bokova said.

The EU's naval mission off the coasts of Somalia has had a deterrent effect on pirates, but alone will not be enough to solve the problem, its commander said on 2nd February. One year after it kicked off in the Gulf of Aden, the EU's first naval mission comprising seven ships and three aircraft was successful in protecting United Nation food supply ships from pirate attacks, rear admiral Peter Hudson told journalists in Brussels. Our priority task is to protect World Food Programme vessels, which is time consuming, as they are small and slow, but very important for the stability of the population in Somalia," Mr Hudson said. But he also conceded that the pirates have simply moved from the narrow Gulf of Aden to the much larger Somali basin, stretching all the way to the Indian Ocean. If the number of seized ships and pirate attacks has dropped in the Gulf of Aden in the last four months, it has increased in the broader Somali basin, an ocean which Mr Hudson said is 10 times the size of Germany. Nine commercial ships remain hijacked by pirates, while the overall ransom paid out in 2009 for seized vessels lies somewhere between $60-80 million (€42-57 million).

European seas are emptying of valuable fish - more than 80% of assessed fish stocks in EU waters are overfished and 30% are outside safe biological limits. As a result, the fishing sector is suffering and fishing communities struggle to make a living. The long-term environmental consequences are yet to be determined. However all is not lost, as a recently launched reform of the EU's Common Fisheries Policy is up for completion by 2012. Fish stocks can be rebuilt and the fishing sector can once again thrive, at least in the medium and long term. Be warned though, this isn't the first attempt at reform. The most recent occurred in 2002. The Commission then cited "dwindling fish stocks, diminishing catches, too many vessels chasing too few fish, steady job losses and a lack of effective control and sanctions" among the chronic problems facing European fisheries. Five years after the 2002 reform, however, the European Court of Auditors still identified "poor profitability and steadily declining employment" in the fishing sector, and many of the problems observed then by the European Commission still plague the industry.

African nations on the 25th January urged European governments to resist calls for a new round of legal ivory sales and protect the world's elephant population. Representatives of the 17-country Coalition for the African Elephant came to Brussels seeking support after Tanzania and Zambia each requested fresh authorisations from international regulators. "We are asking the European Union to take a clear stance in support of a nine-year moratorium adopted in 2007 by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES)," Kenyan Forest and Fauna Minister Noah Wekesa told journalists. Experts say some 38,000 African elephants are killed each year for their tusks -- out of total numbers of perhaps half a million. With black market sales on the rise again, some nations that consider their elephant populations to be out of danger are arguing stocks of the precious ivory should be sold legally. Tanzania wants to be able to sell 90 tonnes of ivory, and Zambia 22 tonnes, but both need permission from the CITES international body when it next meets in Doha, Qatar, from March 13 to 25. A 1989 ban on ivory sales, a measure destined to protect the African elephant and rhino, was relaxed in June 2007 under a compromise that prolonged the moratorium but allowed Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe to make a one-off sale of 108 tonnes to buyers in China and Japan. "The EU plays a major role within CITES," Wekesa insisted. "If it abstains during this vote, it will contribute towards worsening an already critical situation.

A torrent of words - 90% of which are averse ones - is following the decision taken on January 29 by the Italian Council of State, which for the first time in Italy allows to sow a variety of GM maize, Monsanto's "MON 810", one of the some 90 varieties registered in Europe and already used in Spain. But what matters are the facts. The first fact: the decision of the Council of State requires the Ministry of Agriculture to issue the authorization for sowing within 90 days. The second one: on a plot of less than three hectares in the municipality of Vivaro (near Pordenone, north-eastern Italy), everything is ready and from next April there will be the first Italian cultivation of genetically engineered maize. "At last I am free to do it," told reporters Silvano Dalla Libera, corn producer and deputy president of Futuragra, the farmers' association that is fighting for the introduction of biotechnology in agriculture. According to Dalla Libera's own words, "the Vivaro field will be sown with a dual purpose."

Dr Jonathan Aremu, a consultant to the Common Investment Market of ECOWAS, has urged the European Union (EU) to show commitment in developing Nigeria's infrastructure before the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) is signed. The EPA is a trade agreement being negotiated currently between West Africa and the EU to open up the West African market to products from Europe.Aremu said without developing the country's infrastructure, concluding the EPA negotiations would not be possible in the near future."If there is a way in which they can commit themselves to developing the infrastructure, we can sign it but without concluding it, opening our doors to their products will not be good for us. "Up till now, the EU has not been able to come up with an acceptable development initiative to ensure that production and supply rigidity are addressed. So, that is why it has not been signed," he said. The consultant said the most critical development issue in the country was the power problem, which had made production to be "highly inefficient and very expensive. "So, if we sign something like that now, then the soap-making company in Nigeria will not be able to produce. We have to be importing all the soaps from Europe." Aremu, who was the Chairman of the Investment Section of the EPA Committee in Nigeria, stressed that the country's power sector and road network should be developed

On the 28th january, the Council agreed on a draft regulation laying down obligations of operators who place timber and timber products on the European market. The future regulation is aimed at minimizing the risk of placing illegally harvested timber and timber products on the EU market. The new rules are intended to be based on the due diligence system, enabling operators to track the timber and timber products, to have access to information concerning compliance with the applicable legislation and to manage the risk of placing illegally timber products on the European market. More specifically, the draft regulation is aimed at obliging operators to seek sufficient guarantees that the timber products they sell have been harvested according to the relevant laws of the country of origin. Illegal logging poses a significant threat to forests as it contributes to the process of deforestation, which is responsible for about 20% of CO2 emissions, threatens biodiversity and undermines sustainable forest management and development. The Council's decision completes the partial agreement reached by the Agriculture and Fisheries Council on 14-16 December 2009. The agreement enables the adoption of a Council's position to be forwarded to the European Parliament for its second reading.

Once again an immense tragedy has hit Haïti which desperately needs swift, strong and coordinated support from the European Union and its Member States. The EU, founded on the principles of solidarity with third countries, as stated in art 3 and 21 of the TUE, shall help the Haiti population devastated by the earthquake. It must do this in the most effective way possible, together with other International organisations and the UN in particular. Financial support is a crucial element and the European Commission's allocation of 3 million Euros for humanitarian aid should only be the first step. This financial aid on its own is not enough, much more can be done and must be done. The procedure to raise additional funds from the Emergency Aid Reserve should be launched immediately. Further assessment should also be given to how Consular and diplomatic assistance has been provided to EU citizens in Haiti, and to how well the EU emergency plans in this region have worked (as foreseen by the 2006 Council Guidelines). Such assessment is foreseen by art. 23 TFUE.

26 January 2010: At a ceremony held at International Energy Agency headquarters in Paris, France, the EU acceded to the International Partnership for Energy Efficiency Cooperation (IPEEC). The IPEEC was formed in June 2008, during a G8 Energy Ministerial meeting held in Aomori, Japan. Its role is to provide a high-level forum to facilitate advancements in energy efficiency, with initial projects focusing on improving efficiency of buildings, creating a summary of current national energy efficiency measures and improving methods of ensuring efficiency gains.

Reflections from Eurodad and Counter Balance to the Wise Persons Panel -With loans in 2008 outside the European Union (EU) of around EUR 6.1 billion, the European Investment Bank (EIB) is a leading financial powerhouse operating around the globe on behalf of the EU and its member states, the EIB’s shareholders. In recent years the EIB’s lending activities have come under increasing attack from parliamentarians and civil society, both in the EU and the Global South, due to the bank's lack of sufficiently clear and binding social, environmental and development standards and procedures, and its continued failure to bring sustainable development to the regions in which it operates. In November 2008 the European Court of Justice made a historical decision recognising that the EIB must promote the objectives of the Community’s development cooperation policy in its operations in Asia, Latin America, pre-accession and neighbouring countries. The mandate for EIB lending to all non-EU countries, excluding ACP and accession countries, is currently being reviewed by a panel of ‘Wise Persons’ . The mid-term review process, set in the last Council decision as a result of the different views of member states concerning the role of the EIB, is seen as crucial for shaping the future of the bank – outcomes are expected in June 2010. The outcomes of this review will have a direct impact on shaping the future EU financial architecture.

The COMESA-EAC-SADC Tripartite and the UK Government’s Department for International Development (DFID), this week entered into a co-operation agreement that will further deepen and strengthen the cooperation between them. DFID and the Tripartite have been working closely together in strengthening the Tripartite (which is at present a coordination arrangement between COMESA, EAC and SADC) to deepen regional integration, economic growth and poverty reduction in Africa. It is also aimed at building capacity of the Regional Economic Communities (RECs) and the promotion of donor coordination so as to achieve greater alignment and harmonisation of external assistance with the Tripartite’s regional priorities and programmes. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) outlines the basis for a long-term partnership between the Tripartite and DFID and formalises DFID’s existing relationship with the Tripartite Task Force through current support programmes (e.g. TradeMark-Southern Africa and TradeMark-East Africa) and provides for expanded future cooperation.

The European Union (EU) will invest 41 billion CFA F in Benin in 2010, the organisation's head of delegation to the country, Mrs. Françiose Collet told the press here on Friday. The grant concerns only the 10th European Development Fund (FED), a programme that invested 65.2 billion CFA F in the country in 2009, said Collet. According to her, the cooperation between EU and Benin goes beyond FED and several projects are financed through facilities like water and energy supports on regional funds and financings by subjects for non-state actors or regional organisations. Food facility, which Benin profited from in 2009 after the global food crisis, to the tune of 13 million euros, or 9 billion CFA F, is also part of the cooperation. According to her, EU remains to date, Benin's first partner for development, with a non-repayable aid of 244 billion CFA F as part of 10th FED. The contribution of EU to fight poverty in Benin within the framework of the Strategy for Poverty Alleviation (SRCP), through the 9th and 10th FED, focuses on the strengthening of governance, the development of infrastructure and the speeding up of the support-budget growth. Apart from these sectors, EU also backs the actions aimed to help the civil society contribute to fight child prostitution, support the private sector or help protect the environment. Collet said the 9th FED, which allocated over 205 billion CFA F, has been, to date, completely committed, while the 10th FED, whose implementation is being carried out, is allocated 244 billion CFA F, or 313 million euros.

Sub-Saharan Africa has been hit hard, first by the food crisis, then more recently by the financial and economic crisis; and the continent is now facing the challenges of adapting to climate change. In this rapidly evolving context, African countries continue to negotiate ambitious Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) with the European Union. Would the EPAs – including the reforms they may require and the mechanisms they may create – have made any difference to the capacity of ACP governments and producers to respond to these crises? In other words, if these agreements had already been up and running, would they have offered solutions for policy-making in the current economic climate? The recently published electronic book “Updating EPAs to today’s global challenges” attempts to address this issue.

Fresh controversy is mounting within the European Union over biofuels and their unintended impact on tropical forests and wetlands, documents show. One leaked document from the EU's executive, the European Commission, suggests biofuel from palm oil might get a boost from new environmental criteria under development. But another contains a warning from a top official that taking full account of the carbon footprint of biofuels might "kill" an EU industry with annual revenues of around $5 billion. The European Union aims to get a tenth of its road fuels from renewable sources by the end of this decade, but has met with criticism that biofuels can force up food prices and do more harm than good in the fight against climate change. Most of the 10% goal will be met through biofuels, creating a market coveted by EU farming nations, which produce about 10 billion litres a year, as well as exporters such as Brazil, Malaysia and Indonesia. Environmentalists say biofuels made from grains and oilseeds are forcing farmers to expand agricultural land by hacking into rainforests and draining wetlands, known as "indirect land-use change" (ILUC).